Eau Claire Polar Plunge
10th Anniversary - Dippin' for a Decade!
Half Moon Beach in Carson Park, Eau Claire
Date: February 22, 2009
This year 689 Plungers raised over $123,000 for Special Olympics! Thank you to everyone who participated in the 2009 Polar Plunge for Special Olympics Wisconsin.
Photos
- Official Plunge Photos by Carl Sahlhoff
- Photos by Jack Corey
- Photos by Rick Wold
- Photo slideshow from the Leader Telegram
- Check back soon for more photos
2009 Video
- Video of the plunge is available for $15 by calling (715) 832-4677
- Catch the Plunge Video on Charter Main Street Sunday, March 8th at noon until 3pm
- Plunge Video Playlists on YouTube
- Have a video you want to share? E-mail info@specialolympicswisconsin.org with a link
2009 Contest Winners
- Fastest individual plunger: Mariah York - new record 2.7 seconds
- Fastest group plungers: Cold ‘n Bold 5.8 seconds
- Best individual costume: Peter the Cow
- Best group theme/costume: Cold ‘n Bold
Plunging: Noon - 2:30 p.m.
Onsite Registration: 11 a.m. - 2:30.p.m.
Watch LIVE on Charter Main Street Channel 7
Directions to Plunge
From Clairemont Ave. (Hwy 12), turn east on Cameron Street. Before Luther Hospital, turn right and follow Plunge signs.
NEW! Courtesy of Riteway Transit, you can be picked up at UWEC in front of Towers dorm at 12:30 & 1pm and return by 2:30. They will also prowl Luther parking lots & streets around hospital and drop you off at Plunge site!
Pre-Registration
Sat., Feb. 21, 4pm-7p.m.
NEW! Beat the crowds by pre-registering at the Barley Club at Pine Meadows, 4324 Fairfax Park Dr (Golf Rd and Fairfax Dr) in Eau Claire.
Turn in money, pick up incentives, and receive your plunge number and time. If registering a group, you will need ALL members to have signed a waiver. Stay for dinner, and Special Olympics will receive 10% of what you spend!
Teams
Call for group packet & get all you need to get your group quickly through registration lines! ATTENTION college, high school, & middle school groups: Your group could win a Cousins Subs party by raising the most money per person!
Polar Plunge Contests
- Fastest Individual Plunger - Action City
- Fastest Group Plungers - Hardees Restaurants
- Best Individual Costume - Fleet Feet on Water St.
- Best Group Costumes - Starbucks Coffee
Concessions provided by Hardees Restaurants; staffed by Sunrise Exchange Club members. Enjoy a free cup of coffee courtesy of Starbucks Coffee Company!
Post Plunge Party
Warm up at Chuck's on Clairemont, (1807 Clairmont frontage road) the official post plunge party site. One free beverage courtesy of General Beer with music provided & a silent auction!
Plunge Reminders:
- It is not necessary to come until 15 minutes before plunge time (if you pre-registered at Barley Club night before.) If registering on site (look for big tent at top of hill), please do after 1:15 p.m.
- Stay in changing tents until number before yours is called, then step out and plunge. After plunging go to hot tubs or back in changing tent.
- Towels supplied by Huebsch Services
- No running or diving. Water is only three ft. deep!
- Wear something on your feet
- Sorry, no wetsuits. USE COSTUME DISCRETION
(this is a family, televised event!)
- Expect to lose your breath for a second!
What to expect at the Eau Claire Polar Plunge
Please car pool to the plunge site as much as possible as parking is limited. Riteway Transit shuttles will patrol the parking lots to pick up those parking farther away.
Pre-registering at the Barley Club on Golf Road, Saturday, Feb 21 from 3 - 7 p.m. is recommended. At that time you can turn in your money, sign a waiver, receive your plunge time and wrist bands and be ready to go the next day. Otherwise, plan on at least 30 minutes of standing in line on plunge day to register. Registration is in a big tent at the top of the hill. Do stop in the tent to visit our souvenir area. All participants receive one free hot chocolate (thanks to Hardees) and coffee (thanks to Starbucks).
Even if you have registered online, you still need to sign a waiver, turn in money, and receive a plunge time and number. Click here to download a waiver. You can call 715-833-0833 for a plunge time and number. We can make arrangements for turning in your plunge money at that time.
All participants receive a famous last words sheet. Give some thought as to what you want read as you plunge. It should not be longer than 20 seconds. This is a good time to write a shameless commercial for your business or group as it will be heard by thousands of people in the Chippewa Valley since we are on live television. You might want to say something like "our group (name) proudly supports Special Olympics", or "thanks to our personal sponsors for making our plunge possible".
If you pre-register, you pass up everything and go right to the changing tent on Sunday, Feb 22. Our GATE KEEPERS, however, will check to make sure all of your group members have wrist bands. They will also let you into the tents 10 minutes before you scheduled plunge time. Only those with wrist bands are allowed into the tent area unless you have made special arrangements and received a plunge pass. Stay in the tent until the number before your number is called, then step out, plunge and either go back into the tent or to the hot tub. We’ll give you a towel when you come out of the water.
There is no running or diving as the ice is slippery and the plunge hole is only 3 feet deep. Divers will help you get out of the water. Be sure to have something on your feet that will not come off as you plunge. Aqua shoes are best as are old tennis shoes.
Remember the plunge is live on Charter Main Street channel 7 so PLEASE use common sense when designing costumes (if you are planning on costumes). No thongs! If we feel you are inappropriately costumed, you won’t be plunging. If you have consumed alcohol prior to plunging, we’ll probably tell you not to plunge either.
Finally, warm up at Chuck’s on Clairemont (two blocks west of the plunge site) and receive your free beverage (if you are 21 or over), bid on items for their silent auction, and watch the rest of the plunge on their tv.
We will make every effort for you to have a good time at the plunge. We appreciate the effort you’ve gone through to raise money for our program so we want you to have fun. However, in the event that it is -11 degrees or worse on the day of the plunge, we’ll be dipping body parts instead of a complete plunge as the danger of hypothermia is too great to risk your health.
New this year!
Don’t want to plunge, but still raise money for Special Olympics? Be a “chicken” and just dip a body part instead!
For more information contact
Andrea Sullivan
Phone: (715) 833-0833
E-mail: asullivan@specialolympicswisconsin.org
2023 Fairfax Ave.
Eau Claire , WI 54701
2009 Plunge Links
- Register online
- Search for a Plunger to pledge to
- Search for a team
- Update your Web page & view your online pledges